Wednesday, October 10, 2012.
The New And Old Ends Of Annunciation Street.
It wasn't really time for my first dinner at Annunciation, Chef Steve Manning's new bistro in the Warehouse District. My dining there tonight wasn't dictated by the number of inquiries and reports that have come in (not many), or by the number of months it's been open (only three), but by the number of times I've driven by the restaurant and looked at it, wondering. And that's only a function of the location of the radio station's parking garage, which sends me in front of Annunciation every night.
On the other hand, how wrong could Chef Steve go? He had two extended stints running the kitchen at Clancy's, to the point that the style of that superb restaurant could be said to be mostly his. The first thing that most people notice about Annunciation is that its menu is reminiscent of that of Clancy's.
"If you do the numerology," Steve said, "you notice something strange." I had indeed noticed that 1016 Annunciation (Steve's new address) and 6100 Annunciation (his old one) are almost eerily similar. More interesting is that Annunciation and Clancy's are respectively at the downtown and uptown extremes of Annunciation Street. Are you still awake?
Just for the good lighting, I asked for and dined at what may be the worst table in any New Orleans restaurant. Jammed between the host stand and the wine room, it took a few minor bumps from the two-person greeting team. The wine guy had to ask me actually to get out of my chair and stand aside so he could open the glass door leading to the wine. There was no other way. But I figured that might happen, so it's my responsibility. Perfect restaurant critic table: I could see everything going on.
I began with a glass of Huntington Sauvignon Blanc, with the idea that its acidity would cut through the olive oil coating the spaghettini bordelaise. It was surrounded by fried oysters, but not as thoroughly as it would have been had this not been an appetizer portion of an entree. Another of my ideas. It was big enough to serve as an entree, though, and even though I was hungry and this was the first course, I left half the pasta. Good dish.
Then the salad special: a pentogram of Belgian endive leaves, each with a satsuma section nestled in its concavity. Radicchio occurred between the five pale-green leaves. So, we have bitterness--something I find palate-sharpening at the beginning of a meal.
Neither of these could be called innovative--just good. Which is good enough for me. People don't pack Clancy's to taste the latest dish, but to enjoy deftly-made, thoughtful variations on familiar themes.
As was proved by the entree, a relic. Chicken bonne femme is not made the same way by any two New Orleans chefs, and Steve's kept that tradition. A half-chicken, mostly deboned, was cooked in a pan to a brown crust halfway to fried. Under it were cubes of potatoes and mushrooms and thick pieces of bacon, all wet down thoroughly by a pan gravy. I have a longtime weakness for dishes like this. Once common, they have been almost completely abandoned by restaurants, because they have to be sold at a low price, and take a long time to cook.
The waiter, who was friendly enough and full of opinions (a plus) touted me on the caramel budino for dessert. This was off the charts in terms of sweetness, and I couldn't eat more than two thirds of it.
So we have good food at Annunciation, although the usual number of early-times tweaks call for execution. The service staff wasn't all there; three times during the meal, I was left with something to eat in front of me but no appropriate utensil. I am finding that my four-course ways have become uncommon enough that not enough forks and knives are routinely sent, but that's no excuse.
However, being open only a few months is a reasonable explanation for a restaurant's imperfections. I'll be back later.
Annunciation. Warehouse District: 1016 Annunciation. 504-568-0245.
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